What happened to Compromise?

I always admired Henry Clay’s place in American history, “the great compromiser” played a critical role in his ability to see both sides of a situation and find common ground.  As I reflect on Commissioner King’s forum yesterday it is obvious we need to find some compromise.  The two “sides” are pretty much at opposite ends; both making valid points and apparently not hearing each other.  Here are some ‘doable’ ideas that have been suggested by the State superintendent organization.  They represent compromise positions on key areas of concern. 

• Amend/eliminate the SLO-  The APPR law requires that every teacher have a HEDI (high effective, effective, developing, ineffective) score at the end of the year.  This score is calculated using 60% classroom evaluations, 20% State score (based on student assessment scores) and 20% local score (based on student assessment scores).  The State only provides a State score for teachers of grades 4-8.  ALL other State and local scores are determined by each District. Said differently- the fever over 3-8 state exams as part of teacher evaluations only affects approximately 16% of the teachers across the State AND if only accounts for 20% of those teachers overall HEDI score.   Each District has the task of determining the score for the remaining 84% of the teachers for BOTH 20% State score and 20% local score.  This practice has dramatically increased the amount of exams that students take.   The SLO has to be amended or eliminated.
• Grade 3-5 testing must be shortened over 2 days and within a 60 minutes window
• The Scope and Sequence and modules must be made available 1 school year prior to the implementation of  Common Core Regents
• The Common Core Regents cut scores cannot yield the same results as we saw in 3-8 this year.  These are graduation requirements that will affect students’ future plans
•  Consider using a 3 on AP or IB as a Substitute for the Aspirational index. 

In the world of compromise a win-win is the desired outcome.  While these suggestions do not radically change any of the current common core implementation they do address key concerns of parents and educators.   Some historians believe that Henry Clay only delayed the inevitable-  I remain optimistic that in the end the Common Core standards and curriculum(s) will be good for our children. We will continue to implement the change with an understanding that a balance MUST be accomplished between a child’s love of learning and increased rigor.